Traitors star planned to win with Essex stereotype

Spoiler warning: This story contains details of the outcome of The Traitors UK

Traitors finalist Jack Butler has revealed he planned to use Essex stereotypes to get ahead in the hit BBC One show.

The personal trainer, who is originally from Sawbridgeworth in Hertfordshire but now lives in Harlow, said ahead of the show he "had a couple of sun beds" and went into the castle with "nice white teeth".

He told BBC Essex: "I actually came into the game, and my whole family will attest to this, I was dead set on being a traitor.

"Being a personal trainer from Essex, I thought I'm just going to play up to that stereotype, Claudia [Winkleman] will pick me as a traitor and people will underestimate me."

Things did not go as planned, the host did not pick the 29-year-old to be a traitor, leading to a change of tactics.

By the end of Friday's final episode he was the last faithful standing and had made it through the whole game without a single vote from his fellow players.

"I didn't actually end up using my Essex PT stereotype too much to be fair.

"It wasn't needed in the end, I enjoyed just being me on the show and not having to put on a facade."

He did admit that his job came in useful on some of the missions the contestants were set, but he was "quite embarrassed" when fellow player Stephen Libby out ran him in the last challenge.

Libby later conspired with fellow Traitor Rachel Duffy to vote out Butler in the series' final moments and take the £95,750 prize.

However, Butler praised his deceitful friend for doing "a great job of convicing me the whole way through".

He said: "I was terrified of being murdered and he acted just as terrified as me and I got hoodwinked.

"Our friendships are all still intact and it's lucky we're all still hanging out together and friends."

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